Heritage Tomato Tartare with Fennel, Rocket and bitter leaves

This is a really fresh recipe, it still has the salted pickled flavour, still has the chunks of chopped meatiness and still has the rich, fatty tasting, fennel mayo. Tartare for vegans! and super simple too!

Feeds 2, Prep time 30 minutes, cook time 30 minnutes

200g peeled heritage plum tomatoes: The more colourful the mix the better

40 g peeled cherry tomatoes

15 g finely chopped capers

15 g finely chopped cornichons

a splash of balsamic or sherry vinegar

1 head fennel

175 ml White wine 

175 ml olive oil 

1 sprig of rosemary

2 bay leaves 

4 garlic cloves

2 tbs caster sugar

30 lemon juice

pinch of fennel seeds

125ml water

1/2 tsp Xanthan gum

70 g rocket 

20 ml water 

30 White balsamic or white wine vinegar

1 tbs dijon mustard

100 ml olive oil

Some bitter crunchy leaves washed and ready to go

Take the tomatoes, cornichons & capers  and toss them into a bowl with a good crack of salt and a splash of either sherry or balsamic vinegar.

Chop the cherry tomatoes in half and chuck them in as well and allow this to sit and and infuse.

Cut the fennel into four pieces and place in a saucepan with the oil, white wine, rosemary, bay leaves, garlic, Fennel seeds, sugar and lemon juice.

Cook on a gentle heat until the fennel has turned soft. The smell will be unbearably delicious. 

Blend 125 ml of water with the Xanthan gum until it begins to become really thick. Take the fennel out or the cooking oil and add to the bender.

Blitz until it's really thick. You can add a splash of the cooking oil in at this point too. You should end up with a rich fennelly fragrant mayo.

That done it's time for the rocket sauce. It's super easy, Take all the dressing ingredients;

Blend it all up in a high speed blender. Done.

I used a cutting ring for this but you can do without for something more rustic.

Stir the tomato mix and dress with a splash of olive oil and taste to check the flavour and seasoning.

Spoon the tomato mix into the ring and press down until it's all nicely compacted. Remove the ring and spoon the fennel puree onto the top.

Dress the plate with the rocket sauce too, and then serve with a bowl of crunchy bitter leaves.

July 11, 2020

Cashew nut, squash, sweet potato and red things

I love this, as in my opinion it gets the best out of a squashes flavour and adds the silky smoothness that a sweet potato can provide. Cover this with the sweet pomegranate, bitter leaves, sour acidic tomatoes, and salty sage leaves as a garnish and its a real winner

Feeds 4-6 / Cooking time 25 minutes / Prep time 10 minutes

INGREDIENTS

30 ml olive oil

1 butternut squash, cored and peeled: approx. 400 g of squash

1 sweet potato, peeled and roughly diced

400 ml Cashew nut Milk

400 ml veg stock or water if not

2 cloves of garlic

1 large thumb of ginger, peeled and chopped

2 white onion, diced

2 heads of Red chicory

1 pomegranate, deseeded

30 g sage leaves, fried until crisp

30 g toasted pumpkin seeds

16 cherry tomatoes cut in half

Pre heat the oven to 140 c

Place the cherry tomato halves onto a tray and bake in the oven until the soup is ready.

Gently fry the onions, garlic, ginger, sweet potato and squash. season well with olive oil, salt and pepper.

Add in the Cashew nut milk and veg stock or water and gently simmer until the squash and sweet potato is soft and tender

Blend all of contents of the pan until super smooth.

Make sure the soup is perfectly seasoned.

Pour into 4 bowls and garnish as neatly or as scruffily as you please.

Cashew, tamarind and maple porridge

I love this recipe, its such a ballsy punchy way to start the day. This version is Vegan but you can replace the nut milk with cows or goats milk quite easily

Feeds 2 / Cooking time 12 minutes / Prep time 2 minutes

INGREDIENTS

100 g oats

225 g cashew nut milk

225 g water 

60 ml maple

60 ml Chang tamarind paste 

2 tbs toasted black and white sesame seeds

Put the oats, water and coconut milk into a pot and heat gently until the mix starts to boil and thicken.

Start to stir until the whole mix has come together and is looking deliciously thick

Mix the tamarind and the maple together and still well. Pour the prridge into 2 bowls and top with the tamarind / maple syrup mix and finally finish with the seeds. 

Raspberry, cacao and Hazelnut Chia seed

This is a super simple way to start the day, an easy mix and leave overnight for a yummy breakfast with proper bitter cacao crunch

Feeds 2 / Prep time10 minutes/ Waiting time Overnight

INGREDIENTS

60 ml or 4tbs chia seeds

250 ml hazelnut milk

1 1/2 Tbs of cacao nibs

1 tbs date syrup

1/2 tsp cinnamon powder

4 tsp good quality cocoa powder( this is key, if its cheap don't bother)

1 tbs vanilla essence

1 pinch of sea salt flakes

1 tbs Stevia or caster sugar depending on how sugar conscious you are

1 punnet of UK grown raspberries and some more cacao nibs to garnish

Mix all the ingredients together in bowl and stir until all the powders and spices are mixed well and there are no clumps or powdery bits just reserving the raspberries and some extra cacao nibs for garnishing.

Leave overnight and split into two bowls, scatter with the raspberries and extra cacao and devour for breakfast 

Radish Ceviche, Pomello, Avocado, Chia

Feeds 2 / Cooking time 0 / Prep time 20 minutes

 INGREDIENTS

45 g Shaved radishes
30 g Shaved daikon

1 avocado

70 ml water 

20 ml lime juice

10 ml olive oil

1/2 tsp Cornish sea salt

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper or paprika

80 ml lime juice

20 ml water 

10 g finely chopped ginger

10 g finely chopped garlic

10 g Cornish sea salt

1/4 red chilli, finely sliced, seeds in

30 ml extra virgin olive oil

A good pinch of flaked pomello flesh

2 sprigs of mint and dill, roughly chopped

1 tsp linseeds and chia seeds

Using a mandolin finely shave the radishes and mouli into a bowl.

Add the lime juice, water, ginger, garlic, salt chilli and olive oil and mix everything together nicely

Blend the avocado, water lime juice and olive oil and the cayenne pepper until completely smooth 
Spread a thin layer of avocado puree onto your plate

Spoon on the radish ceviche with plenty of the citrus juices

Finish with chopped herbs, seeds and pomelo flesh